World War II was arguably the largest war in history. During this period, it can be said that heroes have emerged, creating many classic battles and classic combat techniques. Among them, these four major battles are the most classic!
1. Normandy landing:
D-Day: Code-named Operation Overlord, it was a massive Allied offensive launched by the Allies on the Western Front in Europe during World War II. Nearly three million soldiers crossed the English Channel to Normandy, France. The Battle of Normandy was by far the world's largest maritime landing operation, which fundamentally changed the strategic posture of World War II.
Landing process: At 6:30 a.m. on June 6, 1944, the vanguard of the Allied forces, mainly British and American troops, totaling 176,000 people, crossed the English Channel from Britain, landed in Normandy, and captured five beaches in Utah, Omaha, Golden Beach, Juneau and Jiantan; Since then, 2.88 million Allied troops have poured into France like a tidal wave, successfully opening up the second battlefield of the European continent. Ends on 19 August after crossing the Seine-Marne River.
2. The Battle of Stalingrad:
The Battle of Stalingrad was the worst strategic defeat suffered by fascist Germany, and not only ended the offensive situation maintained by army group South germany since 1941, but also directly caused a fundamental change in the overall balance of power between the Soviet Union and Germany. Worldwide, the Battle of Stalingrad, along with the Guadalcanal and El Alamein campaigns of the same period, constituted a landmark event in the great turning point of the anti-fascist war at the end of 1942. Judging by the casualty figures alone, the battle was also the bloodiest battle in recent history, with casualties estimated at about 2 million people on both sides.
Moreover, Stalingrad is of strategic and spiritual significance, if Stalingrad falls, it will inevitably cause a serious blow to the Red Army and the Red Navy and the Soviet people, and the German army can attack the Caucasus oil region, support the Italian army and seize the lifeblood of the Soviet Union: grain, industrial production base.
3. Battle of Pearl Harbor:
This battle was the fuse of the Pacific War, and japan at that time could be said to have no one in sight, and actually planned to sneak attack Pearl Harbor, and the United States, which had been standing idly by, also had to get involved in World War II. On December 7, 1941, the Japanese Empire attacked Pearl Harbor, the U.S. army at that time was defenseless, and finally suffered heavy losses, 188 aircraft were destroyed, countless buildings were damaged, more than 2,000 people died, for the United States, it was a huge disaster, I thought I did not participate, I would be fine, did not expect that I would be attacked by others. Just a few days later, Nazi Germany and Italy simultaneously wanted the United States to declare war, and the United States reacted quickly and prepared to do a big job.
4. The Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk was one of the decisive battles of the Soviet-German theater during World War II and the largest tank battle of World War II; It was also the largest battle of World War II, a battle that broke out in Kursk, in which the Germans and the Red Army dispatched nearly 8,000 tanks. The two sides invested about 2.8 million soldiers, the Air Force participated in more than 5,000 aircraft, and set two records: the largest tank battle in history and the largest single-day air battle.
The Battle of Kursk was a watershed in the Soviet-German war. Before the battle, the German army had limited strategic initiative and was able to choose the time and place of the strategic offensive on its own; After the battle, the German army completely lost its strategic initiative and switched from a strategic offensive to a strategic defense, and the Red Army began a large-scale offensive to recover the territory from here. The Battle of Kursk was also seen as another and final pivotal turning point on the Eastern Front.